Oh dear, the bold part has already been done and the underlined part goes whoooosh! - straight over my head
Time to rename the thread then I think, January transfer window or such. Then we can get chatting about who we want to bring in!
good point, do you think this thread should be 'un-stuck' now (Dave, DH if you are online) so it can drop down?
I think this was discussed on the last page, as we might still see outgoing movements when the loan window opens, I think the consensus was to give it a bit of time. There's still some ongoing transfers too, what with Carlton Cole close to rejoining West Ham.
fair shout. it might make sense to open the Jan one in say end of november, as there will be a few rumours to discuss by then and it's good to have them all on one thread - not suggesting you need to update the first page DH!
May be a stupid question especially in light of Carlton Cole, but can we sign free agents whenever we like?
Pity our bet is off Munky, with Arsenal not succeeding in signing Suarez. Just imagine if they'd got him as well as Ozil . Still, Gunners fans needn't worry, Arsenal were the third highest goal scorers in the Premier League last season, even with Giroud not firing on all cylinders. Now that they have Ozil, whose ability to set up chances for others is comparable to Messi's, I reckon they'll be more than fine. Who knows, Ozil is so good he might even help Bendtner score goals!
i think so, it's only contracted players you can sign in the window. But, i'd have thought if they are signed AFTER naming your 25 man league team, which must be in a week or so, they cannot play in the league until the end of January
Go to this link: http://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/en/1-bundesliga/vertragslos/wettbewerb_L1.html To change leagues select the "Change Competition" drop down and select the new country, loads of free agents on there, I found some under 21 as well but I'd never heard of them!
Ozil is indeed an absolutely superb player, though I'm not really convinced that he's just what Arsenal need as for me Cazorla does the creating chances brilliantly already - it's the lack of quality options to stick the ball in the net that could/will be their downfall. Giroud has come flying out of the block so far, but how long will he keep that up? And what happens when he dries up? That notwithstanding Arsenal should now still have a very good chance of top four again this year, but are still miles and miles off challenging for the title
We seem to be witnessing a new trend developing of clubs picking and choosing which clubs they will let players go to, even though they have said the player can leave at the right price. Liverpool owner John Henry said recently that, even if Suarez was sold, he would not be allowed to join Arsenal at any price. There were reports yesterday that Chelsea similary refused to let Demba Ba go to Arsenal on loan (though other reports said the deal fell through because Chelsea demanded an absurd "loan fee" which Arsenal refused to pay). IMO this trend is disgraceful and I hope at some point it is challenged in court.
Robbie - I can understand a club not wishing to sell a playing asset to a direct rival. Why would Liverpool looking for a CL spot sell their top scorer and by far their best player to Arsenal whom they probably consider their best bet for taking the CL spot from? It makes little sense to get £45m for a player and forgo maybe £25m in prize money for getting into the CL. It may smart as an Arsenal fan in this instance but I don't think that htis is anything new - I am sure that Man U would not have sold Ronaldo to another English club regardless of fee. Arsenal agreed to sell RvP to Man U and in my opinion this decided the title last season so it is understandable that the top clubs may pick and choose who they sell to. If you are not a "selling club" (probably only Man U/Chelsea or Man City fall into this category in England) then you are in the happy poistion of only selling players you can improve on to whom you choose. Every other club lives with the knowledge that if one of the three massive spenders come in then the odds are you will get a decent price but you will still sell to them. I can't see an issue legally - if you have an asset you can choose to sell or not to sell regardless of price or destination. Personally I think that the loan system is far more unfair where clubs can benefit massively by having players they otherwise couldn't afford on loan to thin out the top clubs squads - the obvious one for me was Bellamy at Cardiff with Man City paying part of his wages but there seem to be a number of pretty good players being loaned out which skews the balance of the league. I don't see how it can be stopped but it seems pretty unfair to me that your best player could be on loan got on the cheap from one of your league rivals.
i know robbie is probably wetting his pants at the thought of ozil in an arsenal shirt but you can't help wonder whether the german's signing is to appease the fans apparent desire for a big name, big money signing rather than actually addressing their major problems, of which there are many. they are already very strong in midfield and have lots of similar players so in that respect, its a very odd signing but great for the premier league as he's a world class player. not sure it'll make arsenal any more likely to get into the top four or not but their squad is so brittle and as you say, are some distance from a title challenge.
this has always happened! it's common sense management to not sell to a main rival and isn't a new trend
Re. Cazorla, Arsenal having frequently played him in central midfield has tended to mask the fact that he is actually a talented wide player who, being two footed, can play comfortably on either wing. With Ozil's arrival I think you will see him playing more on the left, in the role that Podolski was often required to fill last season. If you consider that Rosicky is getting on and seldom plays anything like a full season, and Wilshere has still to be nursed a bit, signing Ozil means that Wenger has unparalled attacking options in midfield. Furthermore, Ozil scores goals (9 in 32 league appearances for Madrid last season) adding to the already considerable firepower of the Arsenal midfield. Even without signing another striker, Arsenal will not be short of goals.
Plus they have so many injuries at the moment, it's ridiculous, who's next? and what players do they have as backup?, I think even with Ozil they will be end up in the same PL position.
fellaini would have been absolutely perfect for arsenal - stunned they didn't go for him, absolutely stunned. demba ba i believe would have been a clever signing but as you say, that wasn't possible in the end but that might be because its taken them all flippin' window to get their arse into gear!! chelsea may have been more willing to sell him in june when they had time to replace him properly and this is what i've been saying throughout the summer - arsenal are a shambles in the transfer market and signing ozil doesn't change that
